July 22nd, 2010 § 0
Manfrotto makes a well-thought-for and well-designed sandbag; Arri does not.
Manfrotto sandbag actually keep the sand in all the time, in transit or in use; Arri leaks sand through the zipper … all the time.
Manfrotto uses better material for their sandbag; Arri, well, let’s say if rain starts to fall, water will soak through the bag easily.
Manfrotto … just go buy a Manfrotto sandbag if you get a chance and stay away from Arri’s.
If you have a better suggestion, I am all ears.
yours truly
April 30th, 2010 § 0
I recently shot Janice Graham the band in collaboration with Manchester Music. It was a blast to blasting light into the sun for an hour or so, before resorting back to the shade.
An hour may seem rather generous to some, but I always try to offer a few variations for the editor, so they will always have a choice.
While I scouted for “clean” background in a messy back yard, my assistant Duncan offloaded all the lights and camera (yet some say men can’t multitasking?).
Now the technical stuff for the geek who reads my blog (assuming there are 2 readers, 1 of which must be a geek). My primary light source were 2x Elinchrom ranger pack, one with beauty dish, the other on a westcott apollo softbox, plus the setting sun. I used a bunch of pocket wizards so I can trigger the different set ups within ease, time is money. I know this is light weight compared to some but considering we rolled up in a fiesta, the amount of gear we packed is quite impressive 
The shoot smooth sailed, these lads were up for anything, including sitting right next to a fire, launching into the air and diving for flaming hot sausages!
After bagged the two variations, I turned off the strobe, ready to wrap up, then I saw some rich green foliage along the garden path. I couldn’t resist to let go of the shot, swapped 135mm with a 50mm, and quickly grabbed everyone for some singles in between their “sausage butty feasting”.
Note to myself: next time shooting a teenage rock band, bring a makeup artist … cleaning spots off their faces took me forever!
Now allow me to proudly introduce: Janice Graham the band (in no particular order), you can read the interview feature here.
